there's a little black spot on the sun no more

A couple of days ago, I noticed that my office watch stopped.

self-souvenir from new york city
with a label that says "made in china"
bought for ten dollars inside a store
run by indians within chinatown.
multiculturalism at its finest!

What could it mean?

Hm, nothing. It means the batteries run for a year lang.

And yes, it's Liberty who stopped. Ah, statue state of time? Hm. I wonder.

Wanderlust beckons anew. Do we heed?

If only.

*

But in all honesty, I like the day that just passed.

Aside from watching on the big screen in a Metro Manila theater a very legitimately hot hot hot girl-on-girl make-out and lovemaking session which was not cut by MTRCB (homaygad the girl from That '70s Show is all grown up!!!! Nom nom!), I am at peace knowing that things destined for the future to happen could still be altered, like big time! BIG! What a relief!

And so yes, I am happy now. I guess the antidote for burnout is karma.

Yey!

But for now, we gush:

ahhhh. if i had this girl in between my legs... arrr.
yes, the eyes and lips always get me,
among other body parts. chos.
photo from here.

smoldering! and uncut!!!! ah, good thing i watched
this alone, 'no? no semi-private grabbing happened during
the public screening of this movie. chos! hehe.
photo from here.

even natalie portman can't resist her. who could????
hay aronofsky, henyo ka. review later.
photo from here.

I am *such* a dyke.

Yeah and you love me for it. Chos! Wahaha.

Okay fine laterz! :)

Cine Chichirya - your bite-size film reviews+film school on air at DZUP

Just want to publicize [again] our Friday night radio talk show airing live over UP College of Mass Communication's radio station called DZUP 1602AM.

If you don't have access to an AM band-equipped radio, you can listen to us via live streaming over the internet at this DILC link.

This Friday, we'll be tackling EAT PRAY LOVE. Here's the radio show's blog entry snippet:


Is it truly eat, pray, love? Or ain’t it sample, ogle, exoticize?

This Friday, October 22, join your fabulously fun film faculty trio — Prof. Libay, Sir Cenon and Ms. Avie — for another entertaining yet educational episode as they tackle Hollywood’s western love affair with eastern elements through the dissection of EAT. PRAY. LOVE. the film starring Academy Award-winner Julia Roberts. The film is based on the autobiographical nonfiction New York Times bestseller book by Elizabeth Gilbert...

Read more here.

The show is hosted by three of your young faculty, professors of UP Film Institute Ms. Libay Linsangan Cantor, Ms. Avie Felix and Mr. Cenon Palomares.

Kagat na! Feedback and participation most welcome.

FEMME-atay talaga!

Tomorrow, Friday, is another fun day/early evening as we discuss more than just femme fatales on film but STRONG FEMALES ON FILM in our Friday night favorite habit, CINE CHICHIRYA radio show.

Siyempre sino pa writer nito kundi ang lola niyo hehe. Dapat talaga, ang naisip kong topic this week ay Pageant Films para in tune sa parating na Miss Universe pageant next week sa Las Vegas. But no, bigla akong tinamad sa konsepto, at naalalang di ko pa nga pala nasisipat ang bagong pelikula ni Angelina Jolie my love, so ayan. Baka bulabugin na naman niya ako sa panaginip ko e, so kelangang umaksyon hehe. Siya rin ang side dish sa show bukas, particularly ang SALT. Kebs muna kay Bb. Pilipinas-Universe Venus Raj. When Angelina beckons, laglag lahat, teh, like, you know. At diyusme, gudlak na lang din kay Venus ha; nakita niyo na ba ang ibang Latin American contestants??? As usual, mga ganju fatale ang mga latina girlash. But I digress...

Winner ang image collage na gawa ng co-host superfriend kong si X.


Wala ka sa Pinas? Keri lang. May live streaming sa website ng DILC ang radio show. Check out the show's blog to see the link. Or ayan sa kaliwa, click mo na rin. As usual, the usual suspects na naman ang mga co-hosts ko dito hehe.

O, chicha na bukas ha. Chomp!

But wait, there's more!

Labas na pala ang latest POC article ko, of course mentioning Angelina's bisexual mystique naman and other lesbian chic-ness in media. Read about it here. At least the Pinoy LGBT channel survived the revamp hehe.

Ayan, ang saya, di ba? Sige, sisipatin ko na ang SALT at sasabihin ko na rin kapag out na.

O siya, goodnight.

enjoying the Friday night habit

I'm actually having a lot of fun in my new "habits" this semester and they all involve media work.

The one I'm enjoying is this Friday night chikahan with my two good friends who are also my co-teachers sa Film Institute. Napapayag ko silang samahan ako sa isang radio talk show aired over our college radio station DZUP 1602AM. It's a film review show and we're just having so much fun doing it.

During the pilot broadcast (09July)
where we dissected Toy Story 3.

It takes us more than an hour to talk about films, so imagine the way we cram inside the booth when we only have like 50 minutes or so of talk time. Still, it's fun. We're getting used to it, and we hope more people listen. Hindi lang siya sa Manila AM band, worldwide din because of the live streaming website thingie. Click the show's site na lang to look at the chorva there.

During the second episode where
we discussed the recently concluded
Cinemalaya 2010 sa CCP.

So yes, I am now a radio talk show host hehe. Aliw, teh. Kinig kayo, tell me what you think hehe. My mother said I use the word "actually" a lot. Hmm gotta change that.

Another fun habit is my new writing gig for POC. They established an LGBT channel and I volunteered to be one of the writers. My articles are archived here sa Culture Popper site ko. check 'em out.


Ang saya! I just wished these gigs were paying ones, or paid more hehe. But I dunno, I guess it's okay because I'm happy doing them, e. That's the most important thing lang naman, I guess...

So I'll be back with more blogging chuva as soon as this month is over. Dami lang karaketang napasukan kaya busy ang moda ng lola niyo.

bonggang bonggang bougainvilla

Or in short, try to catch the movie HERE COMES THE BRIDE now showing in local cinemas. My review of that movie can be found here in my Leaflens Takilya horcrux.

Read na. Now na. Pak! :)

***

By next week, I'll be publicizing another gimik I got myself into. Don't worry, it's legal, and like always, it's all gay :).

Keep cold, everyone. Woohoo 38 freakin' degrees celsius today, dude! That's 100 fahrenheit for our North American friends. Majinit ever. Kalurkey.

sine chirchiryahan: time traveling up across the universe

nabuhayan akong mag-blog dahil inspired akong manyugi hehehe. chos. hindi naman. slight.

as usual, mabilisang paspasan muna, bite-size reviews of films i've recently seen. dami na kasi kaya magandang itala na bago malimutan na naman.

here goes.



ACROSS THE UNIVERSE (2007)
d. julie taymor
featuring songs by the beatles

pitch: some kinda love story cum anti-war protest statements on the side peppered with beatles songs

catch: elements are not cooperating cohesively

i first came across this film in my favorite lezbitranswomen entertainment site afterellen.com as they alert you of upcoming movies with lbtqi characters/images/depictions/whatnots. at aliw dahil part-pinoy ang heritage ng nag-portray kay prudence, ang lbtqi character dito, na si t.v. carpio. cute, if not for her kinda drugged-out-like performance or character attack. other than that, wala masyado maaasahan sa kanya.

and that's the problem with this film. wala ka masyado maaasahan sa naratibo niya. sayang. i so love the visualization of some scenes (especially the strawberry fields segment) but sometimes they stick out like sore thumbs in the overall scheme of things. the julie taymor quirky surrealist approach i first fell in love with sa FRIDA is an ultimate fail here. sayang. parang minsan gusto nitong maging MOULING ROUGE na hindi nagaganap, o kaya maging angsty na RENT level pero hindi na-a-achieve. minsan para kasing feeling pilit ang songs, na hindi organically lumabas sa istorya. take pointers from MAMMA MIA to see what i mean. doon, hindi contrived ang dating ng songs, kahit ang chakaness kumanta ni pierce brosnan, but i digress.

and no, it doesn't help na ang characters mo ay named after the songs mismo na anytime hinihintay mo na lang ang fruition ng name-song niya, like si jude na yes kinanta ang "hey jude" at si lucy na no, walang "lucy in the sky with diamonds" (or did i miss it sa kabagutan? hm.). sayang dahil maganda pa naman ang arrangement ng ilang songs at ang pagkakakanta ng mga singers like si bono na nag-cameo. luz.

sayang sayang sayang ang budget. good example siya of how not to do a musical. students please take note.




THE TIME TRAVELER'S WIFE (2009)
c. rachel mcadams, eric bana
s. from the novel by audrey niffeneger

pitch: modern-day man has genetic disorder that enables him to travel over time, but with undue consequences in his own life, especially affecting his loved ones

catch: methinks it should have stayed as a book

as a book, you have lots of leeway and time to explain a lot of things in a story like genetic anomalies, how one criss-crosses through time, how a love story evolves in different time planes, stuff like that. the film has that effect, na parang patche-patche na naman ang labas dahil sa kulang sa oras kaya salient points na lang ng nobela ang kinuha at bingyang-buhay. sayang dahil ang ganda sana ng premise, na parang hindi rin masyadong nabigyan ng extra kurot sa puso and all that para mas may oomph ang dating, o baka lang din hindi effective sa akin ang akting ni eric bana at ang pagpapakyut ni rachel mcadams. hm. sayang, loves ko pa naman ang mga time-traveling tales and all that. now i want to read the novel tuloy. siya, i will, 'pag nag-sale sa powerbooks.




UP (2009)
p. pixar

pitch: an old man with an adventurous spirit finally embarks on his lifelong adventure to search for a lost paradise land with a scout-like boy as his accidental sidekick

catch: not very happy with the story

maybe it's because i am used to expecting something heartwarming na funny sa pixar animation kaya i was taken aback by all this sentimentality presented in this film. biro mo, mega-montage ang life ng lolo dito mula bata siya at nakilala ang love of his life hanggang sa tumanda na sila and all that, hanggang sa namatay na yung love niya na di man lang nila na-fulfill ang childhood dreams nila to embark on an adventure trail eklavu. hambigaaaaaat.

mas naiiyak ako kesa natutuwa most of the time, dahil sooooobrang lungkot na bigat nito. not that these emotional things should be shunned from seemingly "for children" stuff like these, no. in fact, that's the fact i applaud the most here. even the unwanted child syndrome nung wilderness scout boy (na parang tinatakwil ng parents) ay nahagip dito kahit papaano pero hindi masyadong belabored ang pagkukuwento. maganda siya. light-handed approach kahit heavy-hearted ang effect most times. so okay, ambivalent ako dito. not totally sad. sige na nga.hey, it's pixar. i am programmed to love their works. somewhat.

and i love the rainbow-colored androgynous bird hehe. la lang.

marathon chichiryahan ng mayo

sarap lang minsan magpahinga at manood ng sine. oo, sa akin, ang panonood ng sine ay pagpapahinga, pero creative pa rin at may brain stimulus pa rin. plus of course lafesh chichiryang literal hehe.

the past days, marami kaming tinirang panoorin dito sa bahay, mostly mga na-miss ko sa sinehan o kaya di talaga napalabas dito ever. so heto sila. er, salamat nga pala sa dalawang kaibigang nag-download este nagbigay ng kopya sa akin :)



RACHEL GETTING MARRIED (2008)

d. jonathan demme
s. jenny lumet
dop. declan quinn
c. anne hathaway, debra winger

pitch: youngest sister comes out of rehab and re-enters her family's life just when her older sister was about to be married chuva

catch: the zooms, but i could overlook that

since the film was shot entirely on digital, not film, i understand the temptation to use zooms, however unnatural this lens movement is, as it is a movement that is not done by the human eye, which, supposedly, is what a film lens should "approximate" most of the time to achieve that "viewing pleasure" we see in most classical narrative-structured films.

but there's another feel to the zooms - the documentary feel. i felt that this was what the director was trying to achieve, na parang home movie ang dating, and reading up on the film later verified this hunch.

the docu feel worked well for the kind of story it's trying to tell. ang daming ambivalence ng feelings ng mga characters because of their individual and combined histories, na lumalabas in bits and pieces, sometimes spurts, sometimes, deluge overload. at ang sentro nitong lahat ay si kym, ang on-and-off rehab kid ng otherwise picketfence-perfect pamilya sa isang suburban middle class middle american town. now i see why anne was nominated for an oscar here. ganda ng performance niya. although wala nga siya sa shining moment ni kate winslet sa THE READER esp that part na she slammed her hand sa table while defending their work as concentration camp guards. that moment alone captured the award for her. sadly, hathaway had no such moments here, walang big cultivation. all of what she was doing was leading up to that, but there was no "that" reached. baka kakulangan ng script o directing din ito, in a way.

but man, overall, i was blown away by how organic this film was. that's the term for it -- organic! all natural, 100% homegrown ingredients kumbaga. no manipulative hollywoodized artificial flavoring techniques. from everything -- the story (anak pala ni sidney lumet ang nagsulat! wagi!), the editing (jump cuts worked - like how you would remember certain scenes in your life as patalon-talong eksena), camerawork (handheld and swish pans worked - like how your head will be so distracted in looking back and forth several people or happenings), even the musical score -- na actually, walang "real score" to begin with kasi lahat ng kinda-score na music na naririnig dito ay hindi outside the story realm (called non-diegetic sound) kundi galing sa story realm ng film (called diegetic sound) mula sa wedding band musicians na laging naririnig na nagre-rehearse sa pali-paligid (love love love the sound of the violin and the skin drums just jamming away).

simple lang ang story at hindi na rin bago. siguro ang bago lang e yung elements na nakapaloob dito - interracial marriage siya, where rachel is white while her groom is black, at hindi isyu ito. the wedding theme is indian in nature, complete with the lively hindu-inspired designs, decor and dresses. the dad's second wife looked like of native american indian descent, and some of their friends were asian-looking. wagi ang multicultural eklavu nitey.

yun na. feeling ko, after watching this, i became a sort of "cinematic vegetarian" na hahanap-hanapin ang organic filmmaking sa ibang pelikula pa.

alas, like meat, i cannot live without my sfx. which brings me to...



BE KIND, REWIND (2008)

d. michel gondry
c. jack black, danny glover, mos def

pitch: small-town video store clerks try to save the store building by using the community's love for films, prompting them to make their own later

catch: yung length siguro, could be trimmed some more for tightness

nakakatawa ng tunay ang mga karakter dito, yung imbes na mainis ka dapat sa kanila dahil sa napakatanga nilang tunay. gaano katanga? nabura ng isa sa kanila ang mga vhs tapes sa video rental store, at naisip nung isa na i-recreate ang mga naburang pelikula by shooting them themselves!!! tutal hindi raw naman alam ng ibang nagrerenta yung tunay na pelikula kasi nga di pa daw nila napapanood. thus, the two misfits end up recreating films like GHOSTBUSTERS, RUSH HOUR 2, ROBOCOP, DRIVING MISS DAISY and even the freaking LION KING!

pero mas panalo yung ideya na naisip nilang gumawa ng "old film" docu-style about a legendary jazz singer na supposedly e tumira sa neighborhood nila. i loved the way they shot it guerilla style, good old-fashioned guerilla filmmaking at its finest. grabe nakakaaliw sila sobra!

but of course, this kind of film only works for cineastes who looooove films. if you're not like that, this film might not work for you.




EPIC MOVIE (2007)

d., s. jason friendberg and aaron seltzer

pitch: spoof of epic/adventure films da vinci code, harry potter, charlie and the chocolate factory, nacho grande, chronicles of narnia, xmen, pirates of the caribbean

catch: if you missed some or most of the films, luz ka!

wala, may masasabi ka pa ba sa satire films na ganito? siyempre may lull moments, may over moments, may corny moments, may funny-ha-ha moments, may chaka moments, at may punyeta-hindi-siya-nakakatawa-laslaaas moments. hindi naman mawawala yun e.

pero yun nga, if you missed any of the films it's spoofing, luz. luckily, napanood ko naman sila lahat, except for NACHO LIBRE (na wala akong balak panoorin). anyway, character peg lang naman yung nacho libre sa isa samga bida, so puwede na.



THE FOUNTAIN (2006)

d., s. darren aronofsky
c. hugh jackman, rachel weiss

pitch: a love story spanning three timeframes in the past, present and future

catch: better to watch on the big screen

if you're familiar with aronofsky, you'd know that his films are visual feasts, experimentations and pushing the edge sometimes, if he ever found edges to begin with. parang di uso sa kanya yun e. he knows the basics and he wants to merge that with what's not yet been done. i like that kind of thinking, instead of just junking the basics and experimenting to high heaven (or hell) and calling your film "indie." but that's another discourse.

gusto ko yung un-hollywood-ized effect ng film na ito, like a new way of telling a story, a love story to be exact, kung paano ang isang devoted man ay naghahanap ng ways and (scientific) breakthroughs to reach/save the love of his life ek. aliw yung spanish conquistador effect ng past love story na tumatagos sa present bilang novel na sinusulat ng girl, na sa future part ay magiging parang esoteric discussion na siya about preserving love and challenging commitment eklavu.ewan, yun ang nakuha ko sa pelikula sa future part, e. medyo open-ended yung future thread ng narrative, and it's not about just a man-woman relationship but it actualy became a personal relationship with oneself eklavu ang dating ba, on how you'll accept things that happen and how you will transgress sadness and all that. kakaiba.

this film will make you think while making you visually awed. i like that.




RATATOUILLE (2007)

d., s. brad bird
p. pixar-disney

pitch: a parisian rat teams up with a garbage boy as culinary partners and revives one of the legendary paris restaurants in the process

catch: wala! happy sha

masaya ito! once again, pixar does its best. ganda ng animation potah, parang totoo ang 3D-ness ng texture ng mga bagay-bagay, lalo na yung mga backgrounds and stuff. cute din yung kuwento kaya aliw. wala lang, yun na. masaya siya. hindi siya aalog-alog na naratibo like MONSTERS VS. ALIENS although di rin naman siya edge-of-your-seat engaging like THE INCREDIBLES. tama lang ang timpla kumbaga. siguro di lang ma-suspend ang disbelief ng small small part sa akin ng fact na ang nagluluto sa kitchen e...isang daga. hahaha! oo andun pa lang ang lola sa level na yun. well, part of me, at least. but i loved this paris-set thingie and stuff. win!

cinechichirya: GHOSTS OF GFS PAST

the first thought that came to my mind as i was about to write this was shyeeeet pinatulan ko toh! but anyway...


GHOSTS OF GIRLFRIENDS PAST

d. mark waters
c. matthew mcconaughey , jennifer garner, michael douglas

pitch: playboy photographer gets life lessons a la scrooge style

catch: gusto ko bunutan ng ngipin si matthew

kasi he smiles. a lot. and it's freaking irritating. oo biased ang movie critic na ito. i hate him.

he ruined a lot of great movies for me, top of which was CONTACT with jodie foster my love. i mean, bagu-bago pa lang siya noon when that movie appeared, at nakakainis na ka-acting sparring niya si jodie agad, dahil wala siyang K! the boy just looks good, pero huwag mo na siyang pagsalitain at certainly wag mo na pa-akting-in ba. kulang sa emote si boylet.

heniwey, that notwithstanding, hindi rin kasi siya bumabagay sa role na ito. okay he's cute, can pull off the dapper dude bit, but he lacks a certain oomph na wala sa ibang hollywood actors who could portray this role better than him. i am so reminded of ewan mcgregor's turn as the bilib-sa-sarili playboy sa DOWN WITH LOVE, and that's a helluva lot better characterization than this one, at dahil nadala ito ng magaling na acting ni ewan. i so love him there man.

hay, o sige, etong si matthew. yes, hindi siya believable. yes, over the top dapat ang karakter niya pero he just doesn't have that x-factor to pull it off, e. nakakairita lang siya. maganda sana dahil ka-acting sparring niya si jennifer garner, na bagay sa role, pero sana magaling din ang tinapat sa kanyang aktor no.

the story is of course predictable. if you're familiar with the scrooge plot pattern na unang nakita sa A Christmas Carol novel ni Charles Dickens, alam mo na ang mangyayari. maganda kasi itong moral tale/fable kaya cinema has been reinventing to death this plot pattern, and to think like 1840s pa ito, decades before the birth of cinema. wagi si charles.

pero di wagi itong pelikulang ito. di ko alam kung paano nila dapat nagawan ng kakaibang twist ito para di naman masyadong predictable at para naging palatable ang characterizations, esp ng protagonist. ang nagdala actually ng pelikula ay ang support characters e, like si jennifer nga, and the dead tito playboy na si michael douglas (who's seriously looking like daddy kirk na, with those wrinkles!), and that cute indian girl who plays matthew's quirky indian assistant. hahaha i love her! dapat marami pang ganitong character sa hollywood films. more asians! it's high time they reflected the realities of their countries noh.

hay. i guess this film is a lull film before all the better ones make buhos in a deluge of summer blockbusters. dami kong gustong panoorin pero nasa next attraction pa. kaya siya, eto, tiyagaan na lang toh. argh. ni sa hbo di ko ata to panonoorin e. ewan. i just wanted to eat popcorn kasi...

cine chichirya: 17 AGAIN

wala kaming mapanood ng nanay ko kanina. dapat iba ang panonoorin namin pero walang kinahinatnan, kaya eto na lang...


17 AGAIN
d. burr steers
c. zac efron, matthew perry

pitch: regretful adult who used to be a high school basketball star discovers what's it like to re-live your youth

catch: um, BIG in reverse? FREAKY FRIDAY (the one with jodie foster my love and/or lindsay lohan the lesbian wannabe). 13 GOING ON 30 maybe.

whatever film it shares this shaky plot pattern with, shaky pa rin siya. at least the others had clear narrative structures and dramatic goals. this one? it's obviously just a vehicle to star the latest hollywood cutie. okay fine he has nice eyes. but after that, wit na. sorry sa HIGH SCHOOL MUSICAL fans, pero walang USP sa akin ang boylet na ito ever e. oh well.

back to the story. manipis siya ati. at natatawa ako kasi ang lapit! sobrang lapit lang ng agwat! walang differentiation ng gaano. i mean, from matthew perry to zac efron? how big of a stretch is that??? chandler still looks like an overgrown high school kid, so it wasn't much of a stretch to have him play his 17 year old self ek. hanlabo. e kahit dun sa adult siya e, parang haiskul ang moda pa rin niya e. ewan. miscast 'ata 'to e, more than narrative loopholes. i mean, it worked fairly well with jaime lee curtis switching with lindsay lohan, and they both did a good job of portraying the other in the FREAKY FRIDAY remake. sa hitsura, sa postura, sa pagdala sa sarili, sa acting! winner si lindsay dito, and decades earlier, si 13 year old jodie foster sa original film.

ganun din si tom hanks sa isa sa pinaka-favorite film ko of all time, yung BIG. winner din siya sa acting like a kid in a grown man's body. bagay. akting! may isa pang kasabayang film ito noon e, na magtatay naman ang nagkapalit, starring a very young fred savage, he of WONDER YEARS tv fame. that one i also like. magaling kasi ang akting! hey, even jennifer garner pulled it off in that 13 GOING ON 30 bit. akting!

can't say the same for this one. marami pang bigas na kakainin si zac to be more convincing as a 30+ man in a young person's bod. man, he just looked like he was "acting like an adult" unconvincingly. hay ewan, basta malabo ito, acting-wise.

na-save ang pelikula ng ibang aspects na nakapaligid sa main actor, mga funny moments ng geek turned millionaire best friend niyang adult, mga subplots na friends niya ang anak niya etc. pero potah, nasisira lagi ng sablay na akting e. sablay sobra. hay.

saka yun nga, natatawa ako sa soooobrang laaaayo ng 1989 sa... 2006! like haller, ano hitsura ng cheerleaders noon? pareho rin ngayon. were they already dancing the pep squad-meets-janet jackson way that time? actually, di pa masyado, kasi si paula abdul actually ang kinda nagpauso nun, at 1989 pa lang siya sumambulat sa eksena, at sa 1990s pa actually mapi-pick up yung ganung cheerleading styles, after janet jackson popularizes them before paula does, kasi si paula ang choreographer ni janet sa earlier music videos niya. and the music? geez. from mc young's "bust a move" then to today's, what, mga hiphop? magkakatunog pa rin! at least yung 13 GOING ON 30, nag-effort na i-differentiate ito, yung nagsayaw sila ng "Thriller" ni michael jackson sa very 2000s na scenario. yun ang difference! malinaw! malayo!

at syempre maikukumpara ko ng matino ito dahil noong 1989, 16 years old pa lang ako! fast forward to today and i am roughly the age of chandler's character at the present. na nakakatawa dahil sa most of my generation ay wala naman nung angst niya, probably because we're asians! his dilemma and problem is so typical of americans that age. not to say na walang ganun dito, pero hindi gaano. wala pang looking back moda at may paghihinayang eklavu na di na-fulfil ang dream nila sa life ek. potah, he's just in his freaking 30s! it's not too late to reinvent himself, just like what others like him have done, and have been doing as we speak! kaloka! ang nipis lang ng angst and character motivation na ito, na napaka-unrealistic ang dating talaga. kaya natatawa ako habang pinanonood ko ito. sobrang unrealistic. sobrang fantasy film lang ito ng mga high school losers siguro, yung mga writers o producers hahaha! chakaaaaa!

and please, the title! noong mga panahong naglalagi pa ako sa star cinema, sinusurot puwet namin kakaupo for hours sa conference room to brainstorm a good title for an upcoming movie. ito naman potah, sana naman nag-effort pa ng kaunti ang brain cells 'no, para mapaganda ang title. hay mega ligwak to the max itey!

pinanood ko lang siya because i want to see how their variation of the plot pattern will turn out. buti na lang masarap ang popcorn sa sinehan kanina. kundi, laslas!!!

cine chichirya: XMEN ORGINS:WOLVERINE

since di pa ko makatulog, eto muna.


XMEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE
d. gavin hood
c. hugh jackman

pitch: the story traces the origins of wolverine from being a "noble fighting" mutant into being the vengeful menace that he became. chuva.

catch: masyadong pa-cool, pacing and visuals suffered

wala, bitin ito. it's not visually spectacular, the ending leaves much to be desired (pero expected anyway), and the pacing is... weird.

ewan. that sums it all up, actually. nothing more to say hehe. pero it worked for me and at the same time, it didn't. schizo, yes.

i've been a fan of the xmen series but only when it began having an animated tv series back in the '90s. hindi ko bet masyado ang magbasa ng "men in tights" comicbook sagas, kahit pinoy pa ang lead animator nito. pero just the same, aliw ako sa konseptong piniprisinta ng series: a population of mutated humans with extraordinary powers/abilities have been growing, some doing good while some doing evil stuff. er, flashforward to 2000s - does this sound familiar? but i digress.

when it made a leap into film, naturally, mas naging bet ko siya. mas nabuo ang 3D-ness ng materyal sa akin, never mind the chaka chaka script ng first XMEN movie (esp. the haller dialogues). with halle berry as storm and sir ian mckellen as magneto, benta na siya agad sa akin! tapos ang usapan! put a sexy dark-skinned pretty girl and a gay rights icon in a film and you had me at "what would you prefer, yellow spandex?" chos. and we saw wolverine patching up bits and pieces of his past in that one. this movie is actually serving as his prequel, of course.

as a prequel, it served its purpose. we saw how his bony extra "fingers" became the lovably sharp metal claw thingies we know now, and how he lost his memory, linking this film to the first xmen film. tapos ang kuwento. we also discover the origin of his xmen name, at ang iba pang chenelyn chuva chuchu back story, with the pasulpot-sulpot na familiar uncanny xmen here and there. keri ko yun.

pero di ko sure kung bakit it leaves me so bitin. maybe this won't happen if the visuals were somewhat spectacular. walang masyadong pizzazz yung texture in general. or maybe it's the action sequences, na hindi gaanong bombastic for me, na too staged and too choreographed by people-who-rip-off-hongkong-martial-arts-stunt-choreographers. something like that. or baka dahil alam ko na kasing it will do its job of impressing us with the usual formulaic elements of the "hollywood summer blockbuster" genre. hm pero hindi rin e. dapat may kuwento. bakit yung TOMB RAIDER?

pero meron naman. hitik pa nga sa kuwento, e, pero di ko pa rin masigurado kung bakit di benta sa akin ang kuwento. parang sa ibang parts may lull (like that whole sequence ng lovely chummy moments eklavulet ni logan at ni kayla chuva - sooo predictable, lalo na nung umapir na si victor mini-wolverine-like sa daanan niya laterzzz), sa ibang parts bigla na lang super-dump ng plot dumps (like that part na kinukuwestiyon ng isang heneral si col. stryker about the col's biased study as deeply rooted to his son being a mutant chuva -- hello, bad example of expository dialogue itey!!! laslas!).

i guess this is one of those films that you'll super-love or super-hate. i'm caught in the middle. maybe this is why i react this way. hm.

lost.

ewan. feeling ko... baka hindi na dapat naging pelikula ito. maybe they have to do a mini-series na lang or a series of one-hour specials chronicling the origins of each xmen. baka mas benta pa yun. pero as a film? parang kapos kasi e. yun. yun siguro yun. some parts feel stretched para maging feature-length siya when in fact this could run in just about an hour. yes, maluwag ang naratibo, hence weird nga ang pacing, and therefore the lulls.

yun. so yes... di siya worth it panoorin sa big screen. not even the "cool" tricks could save it: mga pa-art-e tira ni gambit (na hello, china-channel ba niya si brandon lee sa THE CROW???), mga pa-cool sword tricks talo bala ng baril ni ryan reynolds (hindi na siya nag-grow mula sa antics niya sa BLADE: TRINITY) and of course ang pa-wolf attack ni liev schrieber (na sumisigaw lang ang aura niya ng "i want to be *the* wolverine hehe) na hindi rin naman...happy tignan. ewan ko ba. yun yun e. hindi happy tignan ang images. kaya siguro di nagwo-work for me ito, subconsciously. hay...

basta. sayang. na hindi rin. bitin. sayang.

oh well. let's just wait 'til they make an origins film of storm, or jean grey. winner pa siguro yun. tapos kay diane keaton nila ipa-direk hehe. kung kaya ng powers niya.

tanging ina niyo rin!

dahil tinyaga ko siyang panoorin, tinyaga ko ring sine chichiryahin. itey:



ANG TANGING INA NIYONG LAHAT
(2008)

d. wenn deramas
p. star cinema
s. a bunch of star cinema suki writers
c. aiai delas alas and a bunch of star cinema celebs of non-voting age (or pretending to be of non-voting age)

pitch:

another sequel about that single mom who has 12 children and has to cope with life, this time the coping stems from her need to "be important" in the lives of her kids, going as far as becoming the president of the philippines to achieve this goal. (hey, i am not making this up, pramis)

catch:

pang-ilang sequel na nga ba to? baka kelangan nang i-retire. nagte-threading na ang gulong ng katatatawanan, mga chong, sa pagka-pudpod...



when a film lists a lot of people in the credits for scripting, you know there'll be a problem in the final product of the film. pero hindi rin. minsan it works, especially in assembly-line filmmaking industries like hollywood and france.

pero sa pinas, lalo na sa star, parang hindi. parang pass the message ang pagsusulat nila ng storya. isang major konsepto mula sa isang utak na ibang kamay ang susulat, na pag dumaan na ulit sa original na may utak at dadagdagan niya ng sulat ng kamay na nya, haller na ang labas, puwera na lang siguro kung genius yung utak at kamay.

but this is an MMFF film, so should i be surprised at my disappointment? the answer is, yes, kasi i expect more from this group this time of the year, na minsan naman i-suspend ko ang disbelief ko na they are just making hair-brained screwball comedies just for the money. of course, the content is another thing.

i particularly hated one scene there where the gay son of the ina was in love with a hunky actor, and he wanted to ask his ina, who became the president of the philippines (i am not inventing this stuff!) to pass a law so the gay son and the hunky actor could get married. ang sagot ng ina "huwag naman anak, baka pareho tayong makulong diyan." homophobic. even if it was used in a candycoated comedy way, IT'S NOT FUNNY. HOMOPHOBIA IS NEVER FUNNY. and i am disappointed because some of the people behind this film are gay. gay to the max, gay to the core. saklap.

at a time when the world is reeling in fundamentalist backlash (giyera sa gaza, proposition 8 passed in california), the LGBT community doesn't need to laugh at the fact that they/we are not allowed this basic human right of getting married to the person we want to spend the rest of our lives with. and no, it cannot be dismissed as "it's just a joke" because jokes -- and comedy, in general -- has its deep, deep roots at the realities of our lives, na pinapakita lang in a humorous way, kaya matatawa tayo, pero pagkatapos matawa, dapat mapapaisip din tayo kung ano nga ba yung tinatawanan natin.but the joke on gay marriage here didn't make the audience think; and that was not the intention of the joke, actually. the intention was to make the gay son appear silly in his wants and needs. since when was equality a silly want and need? homophobic.

i'm disappointed, because these kinds of jokes i associate with the likes of ISKUL BUKOL, kaya di ko pinanood iyon at ito ang pinanood ko. kainis lang.

the only consolation in watching this film is the fact na sinubukan nilang saksakan ng women's rights discussion chenelyn, especially family code rules on the single mother's employment rights, and the occasional funny moments delivered by ai-ai and eugene domingo. other than that, ipangkain niyo na lang ang 130 pesos ticket price niyo, or ipamalengke at magluto ng ulam. may ganansya pa.

but wait! there's more. i also can't let go one shot there, yung nag-dolly in ang cam from close-up to semi-extreme close up ng mata ni ai-ai nung malaman niyang nakidnap ang kambal niya. teng, nag-defocus. kamusta naman ang pag-rack focus ng cam movement na toh! and worse, nilagay pa rin nila sa final edit!!! taena ang unprofessional. ginagago nyo ba kami, ha, kala niyo forgivable ang techncal flaws na ganun ka-obvious? my god, hindi ito TV na puwede siyang palampasin! actually, kahit sa TV, di dapat ito pinalalampas, but that's another discourse altogether.

and the thing about star cinema comedies lately, at least in the past 5 years, is that it has a habit of referencing to scenes in past star cinema movies, making it full of "inside jokes." the problem with this is, hindi lahat ng tao napanood lahat ng star cinema movies in the past! writers, please go out of the conference room and breathe fresh air and see the world outside ELJ building, so you could write in more universal jokes and scenes there. ha? i'm just saying. payong kaibigan lang.

hay. next!

more chicha

mga blast from the past and kinda near past, and the heres and nows. ayuz.


GO FISH
(1994)
d. rose troche
s. rose troche, guinevere turner

pitch: college and post-college lesbians bond, face issues of their community, and help those who need help in the love department find love despite their eccentricities

catch: wala. this film is perfect. pramis

and that it is. i remember watching this a long time ago and ending up liking it. more than ten years after, as i watched it again, i find myself loving it.

and why shouldn't i? the lesbians here are of my generation, mga kasabayan ko, perhaps in sexuality moda and in creativity, too. the way the film was shot, with all those quirky experimental in-betweeners sandwiched sa more normative scenes and all, huwaw, may tatak nga kami, in fairness. at hindi lang sa pagiging lebsiyana ito. the style reminds me of darren arronofsky's earlier style, isa ko pang kahenerasyon although syempre iba ang filmmaking focus niya.

simple lang itong film. no more than a little over an hour, pero puno at satisfying sa kuwento, iyon ay kung lesbiyana ka. i don't think they made this film for non-lesbians, pero those who get it are okay. it means may openmindedness na nangyayari. that's how i see it.

hay grabe. nakakatuwa at nakakatawa na ganun pa rin ang concerns natin after more than a decade --finding love chorva. hindi talaga ata ito magbabago bilang thematic framework, ng buhay at ng sining. well, okay naman ako don. :)

hay. wala na akong masabi... basta. there must be some strange reason why i bought this film and watched it at the time i did, in some kind of lesbianic divine intervention kind of way. yes, the universe has a funny way of reminding you that you are okay.

grabe.

and that, i am.



ITTY BITTY TITTY COMMITTEE
(2007)
d. jamie babbit

pitch: a pre-college student working in a plastic surgeon's office finds love and radical feminist advocacy in a girl who's a member of the appropriately termed group CIA or Clits in Action (i'm not making this up!)

catch: it feels amateurish at times, and not in a good way

fast forward to 13 years since GO FISH and we still get independently-produced films shot in a quirky, edgy way, with characters spewing lines of advocacy of a feminist and lesbian nature. nice. nga lang, mas maganda ang handling ng GO FISH sa ganun, at ito hindi.

maganda naman sana ang kuwento, something that should be close to my heart. er, bosom din. the lead character, a kinda prim and proper chicana who is so out to her loving family, works as an assistant in a plastic surgeon's office known for good boob jobs. nawindangers lang ang life ng family niya when she joined nga this radical group with chicks wearing black leather jackets. hay, at yun na ang start ng prublema -- na minsan naman, para kasing walang prublema yung characters, na pilit lang sinaksakan ng prublema. hay labo, lalo na yung nag-a-angst-angst na si chicana na parang wala sa rason o tamang katinuan, script-wise. tapos yung object of affection niya na kept woman ng isang tanders na feministang may sariling NGO chorva (um, shades of lola darkness ito, minus the evilness hehehehe). hay basta, ang daming malabo kaya sometimes it feels so amateurish. parang di pa tapos ayusin at i-rewrite at workshop-in yung script e shinoot na. it felt that way.

hay. sayang. the title was a catch for me kaya ko to binili. well.. take the good with the bad, i suppose. and no amount of cameos will save this film, kahit pa man sina clea duvall yan o si jenny shimizu.



PUCCINI FOR BEGINNERS
(2006)
d., s. maria maggenti
c. justin kirk, gretchen mol, elisabeth reaser

pitch: a lesbian new york writer, fresh from a break-up, finds herself having relations with a man and a woman at the same time, not knowing that the two were lovers

catch: wala! happy din ito! biased ako e bakit ba hahahaha

this one's another good one ha. kakaaliw siya. i love justin kirk esp in ANGELS IN AMERICA and in LOVE! VALOUR! COMPASSION! buwisit yun kasi sa lahat ng mabibigyan ng nominations for acting sa ANGELS, siya wala! bad trip! e role niya kaya yung may pinaka-bearing dun, haller. oh well.

katuwa itong film. nakakatuwa kasi feeling ko, halaw sa tunay na buhay ng writer-director hahaha. i read somewhere na maggenti's not identifying as a woman-loving-woman daw kasi lately, which is kinda ironic, coming from directing another pivotal lesbian film in the 90s called THE INCREDIBLY TRUE ADVENTURES OF TWO GIRLS IN LOVE. yes, that film kung saan semi-baby butch pa si tina, yung actress sa THE L WORD. yes, siya yun! look at the eyes. they have the same blank stare.

feeling ko ganun nga ang film. isang biyaning na malaki ang commitment issues kaya napasok sa isang masalimuot na hetero at homo relationship at the same time, kasi nagpapatianod lang siya. eto yung mga may rason sa buhay na "it just happened..." like "bakit mo ko pinagpalit? bakit ka nainlab sa iba?" at ang sagot sa iyo ay "it just happened..." hanlabo. nakakainis kung tutuusin pero i let it go kasi kyut yung actress eheheh. i am biased that way. madali akong bentahan.

ayokong ibigay ang ending pero nakakatuwa naman siya, but not in a star cinema mainstream cinema film type of way. in an indie film type of way and in a lesbianic way din. basta happy siya. nakatulong ang magandang script. ito halatang nagdaan sa pagbubuno ng mga makikilatis na mata at utak, at mabuti ang kinalabasan. winner! watch!




THE THANK YOU GIRLS
(2008)
d., s. charliebebs gohetia

pitch: a group of visayan gay/trans people, whose livelihood is to join gay beaucons, goes on a roadtrip to find their own inner journeys and outer fabulousness despite the odds

catch: a bit longish, could be edited down a bit pa

congrats to upfi student bebs for helming this first full-length of his. maganda ang topic at hindi siya seasonal: mga gay beaucon joiners na ang tawag pala sa kanila e "thank you girls" kasi lagi silang natatalo o hindi nakakaabot ng first place. premise pa lang, panalo na! kakatawa siya hahaha.

nainis lang ako at hindi ako marunong mag-bisaya. gusto ko pa naman maintindihan yung nuance ng gayspeak nila doon kasi kakaiba e. but the subtitles work naman.

what doesn't work is that repeating narrative cycle style sometimes, reminiscent of other nonlinear narrative films like some mexican films na di ko na maalala title, basta andun si gale garcia chorva kyuti. may malaki dapat dahilan kung bakit babalikan ang ikot ng isang parte ng naratibo, at dapat e sa ibang anggulo naman ito i-take. yung nangyari kasi, parang iisang anggulo lang, at tight lang ang isa at yung isa e wider shot. weird lang.

may feel din siya ng PRISCILLA QUEEN OF THE DESERT, this aussie film of yore na ganito din ang tema, na ni-ripoff naman ng american film na TO WONG FOO THANKS FOR EVERYTHING JULIE NEWMAR about the same time. inevitable ang comparison kasi road trip ito ng trannies at may eksenang nasa top ng bubong ng jeep at nagpapalipad ng colorful cloth.

the VO also reminds me of Y TU MAMA TAMBIEN na di mo alam kung sino ang nagsasalita tapos marami siyang alam sa buhay ng mga tao sa film. iffy lang na in the end, yung jeep pala ang nagsasalita. siya ang VO. actually, i think it could work better kung walang VO na lang, totally. ngayon ko lang naisip. hm.

pero other than that, masaya naman. the acting was good, the lines are witty and funny, lalo na yung nagpapraktis sila ng mga QnA portion while travelling. pinaka-paborito ko ito:

maitim na vakler: i have a question for you. define darkness.
vakler na nagre-rehearse: darkness is here beside me.

or something like that. hahahaha! basta aliw ito! if only for the lines. hahaha! saka maganda yung kuwento. nga lang, minsan it felt pepered with advocacy, with the beaucon women spewing lines straight out of taskforcepride hahahahah! well, this is good pero it might not be a bit realistic, kasi sa totoo lang, hindi naman masyadong advocacy-aware ang karamihan sa mga beaucon joiners na ganito e. siguro dapat tinimpla lang. i get the point but sana hindi nasobrahan.

all in all, happy ako na sasali ito sa vancouver. sana manalo! congrats guys!

isa pang naalala kong exchange, thanks to lush's blogpost.

vakler 1: okay, here is your question. what is your waistline...and why?

hahahahaha nakakatawa! ang dami pa nito e. basta! watch!!!!!!!!


next time ulit.

lesbyana lesbyana, isinapelikula ka na naman!

the title is a take-off from an essay i wrote about the lesbian portrayals in philippine cinema, published in this book by the UP Press. wala lang, it's a sunny afternoon (from a rainy morning) and i decided to hole in here to watch some films and now, make reviews. feel ko lang magsulat e. la lang. sama ko na rin yung iba kong napanood dati pa na pinagmuni-munihan ko muna.

chirchiryahan na!



IMAGINE ME & YOU
(2005)
d., w. ol parker
c. lena heady, piper perabo

pitch: a recently married woman gets struck by love at first sight with a lesbian florist, and is torn on what to do

catch: wala! maganda siya! :)

okay, this is not the first queer-oriented film that piper appeared in. i liked her first in COYOTE UGLY kahit hindi queer ang character niya, pero napaka-queer lang ng scenario ng film (e kasi mukhang mga tranny performers yung ibang models doon). i liked her in LOST AND DELIRIOUS even if the whole lesbian storyline of that film is soooo whacked! (as in haller, tragic lesbian love na naman, pweh!). i like her here, too, kas siguro okay ang chemistry nila ni lena hedy, who plays the lesbian florist na na-inlababo-han nung just hetero-married character ni piper.

out of the list of films i really want to watch, gusto ko siya simply because of the title hehe. kanta kasi siya, at isa sa kanta na gusto ko mula sa lumang panahon. or more appropriately, first line siya ng kanta ng the turtles entitled "happy together." well, it doesn't really get featured so prominently in the film pero ginamit siyang device in the end kaya nagkitang muli ang would-be lovers na itey, in that star cinema kilig fantasy way.

and that's how the whole film feels -- it feels like a star cinema production! palitan mo lang ng hetero loveteam ang lesbian loveteam dito and you get the whole star cinema film shebang: title na halaw sa isang kanta, two gorgeous-looking lead stars, a good storyline with believable characters, humorous sidekicks used as foils (the girl bida's new hubby's promiscuous best man best friend who wanted to bed the lesbian florist), smart wisdom-y things from old characters (piper's dad supportive of her daughter's experience of "love at first sight" despite the homo odds), the mega kilig muntik-nang-maghalikan-pero-idelay-para-kilig moments (at madami ito ha, piper has perfected acting this out haha!), the mega-kilig plant and payoff devices used to make the characters find each other (complete with habulan sa ending kasi papunta sa airport/vacation ang hurt one, na hahabulin ng natauhang loved one at hahabulin yung isa chuva), grabe lang kulang na lang ang credits nito e sabihing directed by olivia lamasan produced by charo santos concio hahahaha! sobrah! all the elements are really there!

kaya siguro gusto ko. kasi it's so mainstream that way (but unlike star, laidback lang ang storytelling at hindi magarbong attention-caller) kaya effective ang kilig moments kasi nakaka-relate ako. finally, a true lesbian kilig film! winner!

hotness si lena heady! yun lang. hehe. i was wondering where i saw her before, and a quick imdb search revealed siya nga pala yung nasa spanish/english film na LLUVIA EN LOS ZAPATOS (the man with rain in his shoes) directed by spanish filmmaker maria ripoll, whom we all met when she went here a couple years ago and we had coffee and cake at the upfi office. tama! at siya rin yung hotness na queen sa testosteron-y cgi film 300. ayuz. i love lena hehe especially that british accent niya ha. happy siya.

happiness ito. for a hetero guy writer-director, super sensitive ang approach sa materyal na ang ganda. parang non-issue masyado ang pag-switch ng hetero lead girl sa pag-fall in love sa lesbian, kasi given lang na hey, it's love, chever. although masyado lang mabait at madaling natanggap ng husband niya, pero sige kineri na rin ng characterization ng dude, so puwedeng palusutin.

but all in all, okay siya. watch!



NOTES ON A SCANDAL
(2006)
s. from the novel by zoe heller
c. dame judy dench, cate blanchett

pitch: a veteran closeted lesbian high school teacher uses a younger new teacher's scandalous affair with a student to curry favors in her favor

catch: putangina ang homophobic!

bwisit! bwisit ito! nakakairita! arrgghh! sayang ang talents. pero iyon ang ipinagtataka ko: bakit pumayag ang talents na lumabas dito?????????

the film is about hidden scandals, usually frowned upon by society. cate's character is an art teacher in a high school and currently undergoing a seven-year itch sa marriage niya with an older man. si dame judy naman is a closeted lesbian pero alam naman ng lahat ba, yung ganun. she had a previous run-in with another teacher na, it turns out in the end, naging stalkerish ang moda niya at the girl had to issue a restraining order pa sa kanya. tapos heto na naman siya, na-focus-an niya ng affection yung new art teacher na halos i-blackmail niya emotionally pero pa-underground ang dating when the art teacher had a sexual love affair with an underage student. haggard! i'm sure hetero ang sumulat ng novel na ito, and not once binanggit nila ang posibilidad ng sexuality chever ng closeted older teacher. nakakainis kasi napaka-homophobic lang ng buong set-up, not to say na walang lesbyanang closeta man o hindi na mangba-blackmail ng ganun sa isang babae para maging emotionally indebted sa kanya yung gelay. maraming ganyan diyan sus i can name names hahahaha. pero that's not the point. the point is, sobrang condemned na agad ang character ni judy in the beginning, kahit na cate's character was "punished" for punishing the closeted lesbian, pero iffy pa rin ang whole situation, kasi the older teacher ends up beginning something na maaaring ganun ulit sa isang complete stranger in the end. aaaaah basta! ayoko ito. buset. kakainis. argh. sayang talent! asar.




RENT (2005)
d. chris columbus
s. from the broadway musical created by jonathan larson
dop. stephen goldblatt
c. rosario dawson and some of the original broadway cast

pitch: a musical about angsty middle class but kinda poor-ish new york artists living in tenement housing chever

catch: er, nasan ang ibang songs?????

it takes a good director to understand the angsts, the motivations, the desires and the longings and loneliness of the characters of a script (or a play) and to be able to translate that on screen requires an enormous amount of understanding. sadly, chris columbus is not that kind of a director.

from the visual language itself, one could see just how homophobic the person behind the camera is. songs about same-sex love are filmed so very far and with some stupid element foregrounding in the mise en scene that we don't get to feel the love the couple is expressing (best demonstrated by the song "i'll follow you" about angel the tranny and tom collins the teacher). minsan din mukhang tanga ang filming ng same-sex eksena na you don't get to understand the nuance of what's happening (best exemplified by the "take me or leave me" number kung saan nag-aaway ang lesbian couple maureen and joanne during their engagement dinner! at habang palipat-lipat sila ng lokasyon per stanza e nakatungangang sumusunod lang ang ibang tao sa kanila! nubayun!!!!!!!!!!!!!). the only moments we see the camera capture tenderly the tender moments of couples ay yung sa treatment na sa huli ng hetero couple roger and mimi. pero pag discussions na about people having AIDS and all, nakalayo rin ang camera, except when that montage of roger and april's love story was being montaged, tutok sa tragedy siya, which felt iffy and sensationalistic a la tv patrol of yore. yes, needless to say, puro long shots at wide shots ang pelikulang ito karamihan. buset.

parang sinayang ni columbus ang musicality ng materyal. hindi siya marunong mag-shoot ng isang musical film, that's it. he should learn from the masters. like how WEST SIDE STORY was shot, na kahit napaka-gay minsan ng choreo ng sharks and jets hehe e buo pa rin ang masculinity ng gangs kahit maga-jazz-jazz sila sa kalye ng new york! ito...ewan, ang labo. ang pangit. asar na asar ako kasi original dvd ang binili ko nito!!! pang-pirated lang pala dapat ang kaledad niya. hmp. buset.

kulang sa imagination, e! like how "tango maureen" was interpreted. man, iba attack ko dito kung ako magdidirek nito. ang chaks! ang bland! at heartless. wala talaga siyang compassion sa characters, sa situations nila, sa materyal. parang di niya naiintindihan ang angst ng ganitong klaseng mga tao. sayang. sayan sobra. hay... sayang kasi i really really reaaaaaaaaaaaally love the musical. i watched new voice's staging of this, twice! (the first staging, with monique mooning the audience hehehe was better, yung sa music museum. the second, nawala na ang angst ng roger ni calvin millado, kasi in-love na siya hahaha. ito yung sa gsis theater na)

hay... sayang.


o sya, more movies later.

sige na nga, bago ko makalimutan...

chichiryahin ko na ang cinemalaya full-length films.

in order of viewed films.



MY FAKE AMERICAN ACCENT
d. ned trespeces
s., p., ned trespeces, onnah valera
dop. jke see

pitch: about the lives of young and old call center agents, the newest kind of yuppies on the philippine scene

catch: camera handling needs polishing

i like this film, and not because mga kabarkada ko ang gumawa hehehe. kaya maiintindihan din nila (i hope :) ) ang constructive criticism na sasabihin ko dito.

i like ned's sensitivity as a filmmaker. his sensitivity as a scriptwriter shows kasi. his material is not that mainstream. it actually treads on that border between mainstream and independent, in terms of storytelling, story handling, (choices of) characterization, and narrative development. this is evident in his star cinema-produced script JOLOGS where multiple characters are given short times to interact with each other and to have each of their lives unfold a bit, creating a narrative chain that sustains the viewers' interests from beginning to end. he utilized the same technique in TRABAHO, his first digital full-length, about the travails of jobhunting.

with this new film, he still utilizes the same sensibilities by unfolding the lives of call center agents. and i like the humor and wit; so contemporary kaya ride ka agad. i think that's the charm of his material, and his films. and for me, that works. wala kang masyadong mabigat na three-act structure na aabangan (very indie) pero may makukuha ka pa ring narrative satisfaction in the end or within the course of the film (very mainstream) so best of both worlds talaga.

my glitch about this film is that bitin siya. i guess kung may mga ganitong naratibo, talagang mabibitin ka kapag konting panahon lang ang naiuukol sa mga karakter. pero kung kumpara sa TRABAHO, parang mas buo iyon in terms of narrative expectations. o siguro talagang naaliw lang ako sa MY FAKE kaya i want to see more.

glitch din ng kaunti ang handling sa character ni mailes kanapi, that team leader-manager (whatever it's called) na bida. i'm not sure how mailes saw her role, pero parang caricature-ish ang treatment niya sa karakter niya (na very teatro ang dating for me) kaya parang na-off ako minsan. parang exag na hindi, parang OA na hindi. lam mo yun? basta, parang ganun ang pull-tug sa character attack. feeling ko nahihiya ang director to direct her baga. minsan talaga, may ganun.

yun ding camerawork minsan. may konting depokadong eksena na yung bg ang focused at ang fg ay hindi. sorry jke! pero i think this is really the folly of the digital technology e. kasi sa shoot ko sa gma, minsan ganyan din ang nangyayari sa cameraman. i wonder why. last na. once, nakita din ang reflection ng camcrew sa eksena. iwas lang sana! :) peace, people.

well, yun lang naman. this is still highly recommended. i like that it doesn't give a heavyhanded lecture on the pros and cons of call center life. casual lang, and that works well.



BABY ANGELO
d. joel ruiz and abi aquino
c. ces quesada, mark gil and a host of others

pitch: about the landlady's search for the person who threw a fetus in the garbage near her apartment compound

catch: nasan ang naratibo?

what happened to the drained look of this film? it doesn't really help the story at all.

as usual, storylines like this are not new. put different types of characters in one setting and let them interact. put a whodunit path para may konting tatakbuhan ang kuwento. and then end it. but how? ayan ang naging prublema ng film. it knew what to start with, when to start, but sustaining what it started was hard for the filmmakers. in the end, we just get an ending na...wala, kelangan lang tapusin. hindi siya bitin, kasi wala kang makagatang malaman na kuwento in the first place. it doesn't work, sorry.

it doesn't help din na the characters are expected na sa kanilang roles. masyadong cookie cutter na siya. yung iba naman, di mo alam ano purpose. yung iba, weird na out of character siya. i'm particularly iffy about those two garbagemen who were feeling icky and all that when they picked up the trash and saw a fetus inside. hindi na sila ganun kasensitibo sa mga napupulot at nakukuha nila sa trash! have you actually seen actual garbagemen pick up trash and all? ang weird lang nito sobra. hay.

sayang pera.



CONCERTO
d. paul morales
c. meryll soriano, shamaine buencamino, nonoy froilan, jay aquitania

pitch: about a wwII story of a family who hid in davao but has music as their refuge ek

catch: hindi kumeri ang pitch na to, kahit well-funded siya!

memoirs of a war nga ang pelikulang ito, tungkol sa isang pamilyang kung saan-saan napadpad kakatakas sa japs during the war, where their father endured hardships and all. sadly, hindi ito lahat nakikita. bagkus, nalalaman ito through expository dialogue na kinukuwento na lang ng mga karakters. eg "kawawa naman si tatay, dalawang taon siyang kinulong ng mga kempentai(sp?) at pinahirapan.." chenes. haysus. nagpelikula ka pa. sana bumili na lang ako ng kopya ng book na pinagbasehan nito, matutuwa pa ko.

tapos weird lang na musika eklat ang nagtatahi sa pamilya eklat para mabuhay chorva, e before the war, wla naman tayong nakitang ganoon kabigat o memorable na episodes kung saan music prominently figured in their lives (cross-reference: watch polanski's THE PIANIST!), save from one scene or two na tumutugtog sa bahay ng piano si ate at sister at nakikinig ang boylet siblings. kaya sobrang walang impact yung na-ship na yung piano sa bukid na pinagtataguan ng family tapos they played pa a concerto sa bukid for the japanese soldiers na naging friendships na nila. hay! ang hirap! ang hirap tanggapin ng narrative unfolding nito. i'll just read the book siguro... sayang ang akting. akting! weird din na parang may mga sexual tension ang characters, especially the siblings! ewan ko. may ganung feel. basta. o baka gutom na ko while watching this. hohum.



JAY
d. francis pasion
c. baron geisler

pitch: a gay reality tv news reporter follows the wake of a murdered gay man, twisting some truths and enhancing some facts all for the glory of tv ratings

catch: TUHOG REDUX, anyone?

the film is very talkative and aptly so, for the medium that it presents in the film (the world of television broadcast chuva, especially of the current affairs/public affairs type). however, i just find it too talkative sometimes that i need a breather/break from too much words. i wanted visuals.

visuals. yes, they're here, and the camerawork is okay naman. very tv lang nga din ang approach at attack. sige, apt na rin sa kuwento.

actingwise, okay siya. nakakatuwa si baron lalo na yung nakikipaglandian siya kay coco martin, yung "basaan tayo. sasabunin kita" ek. hahahaha! typical! funny. he deserved the award.

the story is okay. contemporary, i guess, that's why the foreign judges found it quaint. but for someone who has seen jeff jeturian's TUHOG, it might be bothersome. kasi parehong-pareho ng handling. does it matter that tuhog's scriptwriter was jay's script consultant? i'm not sure if that was a good move on sir bing lao's part. and the director thanking jeff during the screening was...weird.

it's a kind of film you only see once, and that's it. novelty ang dating. sayang. siguro the narrative handling could have made a difference in turning it into a timeless piece. pero parang...mahirap ata yun. talagang pang-here and now lang siyang pelikula. yes, sometimes merong ganun. at eto na nga yun.




HULING PASADA
d. paul sta. ana
c. agot isidro

pitch: a writer deals with the separation from her husband by writing her feelings and hardships into a fiction novel which we also see unfold along with her own narrative

catch: dumaan lang siya, yun na

it's nice na ang isang pelikula ay nag-focus sa isang writer--at fiction writer pa!-- bilang bida. tapos pinakita din ang kanyang sinusulat na kuwento sa atin. novel within a film. tapos nakita natin na ang mga karakter na nag-portray ng fictional characters niya ay ang "real-life" characters na nakakasalamuha niya sa buhay niya (hello shades of dorothy in THE WIZARD OF OZ). pero parang hanggang doon na lang ang charm ng pelikula.

ito yung film na dadaan lang sa iyo, walang masyadong major impact or emotional dent. hindi ko mawari kung bakit. ripe naman ang naratibo for plausible richer scenes, given the kinds of conflicts it presented. kaya lang parang dumaan lang talaga siya, just like the pasada ng taxi na siyang bida sa nobela sa pelikula. dumaan lang.

in fairness, magaling ang akting ng mga aktor. they were handled well. the camerawork i'm not too happy about. may off sa framing, lalo na yung nagsasalita ang characters tapos nasa edge tapos parang saliwa pag pinagdikit ang dalawang shots shot this way. basta. there's something wrong about the visual language; medyo hindi pa siya hasa. passable, pero needs polishing sobra.



NAMETS
d. jay abello
c. christian vasquez, angel jacob

pitch: bacolod bred ex-lovers work together to find the right cuisine of their upcoming restaurant, and in a way find that that is the way to each other's hearts. ek.

catch: saliwa ang camera handling te

cute itong film! one-time watch lang siya pero may novelty kahit papaano. that o baka biased lang ako dahil i love negrense (tama ba term?) cuisine. i heart bacolod and the food and the quaint surroundings and the diction of the ilonggos. tama, biased lang ako. hehe. i wanna be an honorary ilonggo kasi hahaha!

cute yung film. the story is simple: love story pero hindi siya a la star cinema-kilig factor, pero you still find yourself na kinikilig. it helps na siguro maganda ang onscreen chemistry ng actors. at ewan ko lang kung bakit pero when i saw angel jacob outside the cinema, hotness siya! kahit sa screen, hindi naman gaano. hahaha. now this is biased! hahaha. ewan.

in fairness, maganda ang film kahit na obviously rahrah pro-negros chorva ang materyal, pero ang maganda, hindi halata ang pagka-rahrah niya madalas, at hindi salamat-po-dept-of-tourism ang approach. although weird lang minsan yung character ni christian na chef chuva siya pero di niya ma-sense ang basic ingredients ng negrense cooking chuva. flaw itong malaki. sana ibang motivation na lang ang binigay sa kanya kung bakit hindi niya bet ang local cuisine nila in the first place. sayang.

off din ang camerawork dito. may eksenang nagsasagutan na ang lovers pero nakatalikod pa rin si gelay. among other shots. sayang. needs polishing.

all in all, its simplicity worked. hindi siya spectacular, hindi siya pang-award, mainstream ng konti ang sensitivity pero pumapatok naman. watch!




100
d. chris martinez
c. mylene dizon, eugene domingo, tessie tomas

pitch: a woman diagnosed with cancer lists the 100 things she should do before she dies, and does them

catch: BUCKET LIST, anyone?

sure, sure, what plot is original these days, eh. pero the handling of this story was good. so very good. madaming napanalunan ito, directing and script ata included. well-deserved. simple lang, polished in an upper middle class way (think early viva films of the 80s), and acted well. maganda yung nuances ng characters dahil lahat sila buong-buo, have a life of their own, and can stand alone when tested. okay siya. natulungan siya ng magandang script, yung good editing pulse at acting and direction. sample: yung scene na first time nadiskubre ng nanay ng may kanser yung sakit. nasa ospital at nakaratay si mylene, sabay pasok hagulhol si tessie at hyperventilate, cut to next shot nasa wheelchair na si mylene at si tessie na ang nakaratay sa hospital bed. hahahaha! simple yet well-executed in all counts. winner! nakakatuwa siya. at gusto ko ang script kasi witty rin siya, contemporary witty, contemporary witty na lasting, hindi lang pang-here and now ang quality. now that's classic!

gusto ko rin na hindi heavyhanded ang mga eksenang dapat e sad, lalo na yung patukoy sa kanser niya. maganda yung pagka-casual ng treatment pero may weight pa rin, lam mo yun? basta, okay siya. nice. watch!



BOSES
d. ellen ongkeko-marfil
c. coke bolipata, ricky davao, cherry pie picache

pitch: a bitter violinist and a physically abused boy find bonding as healing via the music of their violins. ek.

catch: not so new narrative

the story's not new. sampu sampera din ang ganitong seeking refuge of abused souls via art ek, especially music. marami nang films na ganito. what's refreshing siguro dito is the superb talent of the child prodigy na naglalaro talaga ng violin. doesn't require too much acting prowess din kasi pipi ang role niya. although minsan parang so unicef-heavy ang film na parang nakakairita na. pero maganda na may ganitong awareness sa pelikula. at maganda rin na ang approach ay walang tuldok sa abuser father na posibleng ma-reunite with the abused son later on. pero di na natin kelangang makita ito, kaya di na nila pinakita. open-ended. ang pinakita lang, ang superb violin playing prowess ng kid, and that's that. simple. mentor-student narrative. no big expectations, and sometimes, that works. enjoy the film lang. yun na. it's worth watching, if only to see coke bolipata act and his child prodigy play. nice siya.



RANCHERO
d. michael cardoz
c. archie adamos, garry lim

pitch: the story of the last day of a prisoner who serves as the prison cook

catch: parang nanatili siyang pitch

michael's my former student sa upfi and i really like the way he handled his thesis short film. but playing the mainstream way might not be his biggest quality, as yet. i'm not sure what happened to this film (okay, i partly know hehe but i'm not telling!) kasi parang ang feeling e tinamad na siyang ituloy ang development ng kuwento (consequence ba ito?). maganda sana ang ina-achieve nitong "real-time mode" in unfolding of the narrative, pero dapat it was also well-choreographed in the way shots were made. we get the sense na pinapa-feel sa audience ang banality of life in prison, yung pagka-bagot, boredom ek. pero there's a way of doing this, not just through making longtake babads with scenes without an emotional focus. sayang.

saka my biggest beef here is, hindi marunong maghiwa at magtalop ng foodstuff ang mga ranchero! dapat may konti silang culinary training before the shoot. kasi kung ang reason e preso sila at lalaki at wala talagang alam kaya nag-imbento sila ng sariling style, hindi ito akma. halatang hindi marunong maghiwa ng sibuyas man lang ang mga ito. at ang kapal nilang magbalat ng gulay! dapat alam na nila by now how to make tipid sa paghiwa para mas maraming laman di ba? hay. sorry maikel, avid fan ng lifestyle/food network ang lola mo kaya i can't let this go. but the others, i think i can.

sayang lang ang ending. again, naratibong bitin ito. sayang, malaki pa naman ang potential ng material. sana hindi nabitawan ang development...



BRUTUS
d. tara illenberger
c. yul servo

pitch: mangyan children who work as helpers of illegal loggers in mindoro meet lots of "social issue" obstacles in their task

catch: nalunod sa NGO-ship ang kuwento

maganda sana sobra ang premise ng pelikula. it has an obvious statement on the environment, particularly illegal logging (although off lang yung music video-ish sa gitna na may modang 'mahalin ang kalikasan chorva' to the tune of a joey ayala song). but along the way, the story was marred by a wayward unfolding that left the story without a clear-cut focus.

it's a simple story sana about two kids who want to make extra money the illegal way, by being "brutus" -- people who bring the cut wood to the lowlads via hidden means. along the way, dami nilang nadaanan at bawat dinaanan e dagdag sa kuwentong nakapagpalayo ng konti o malaki sa main plot nila. i guess that's the point: too many subplots na sinubukang i-resolve isa-isa at minsan nakakalimutan balikan ang main plot ng dalawang bata.

it doesn't help din na ang mga dialogues dito mostly sound like advocacy pieces, lalo na when that waxing poetic of a character ni ronnie lazaro as the army soldier with a golden heart speaks his mind. tapos si yul servo andun din to speak for the NPAs and why their fight makes sense pa rin chuva. kaya lang for a neps, hindi siya magaling gumalaw sa bundok! ang labo. parang ma-o-off balance siya sa pag-step sa kahoy, sa bato, etc. wala siyang liksi ati. parang hindi niya alam kung san tatapak -- and not because hindi siya familiar sa place kaya nagpatulong siya sa kids for directions. not to mention, as mentioned by another indie filmmaker somewhere, na ang bright color ng shirt niya, at bagong bago ang jeans! hihihi. nitpicking i know pero may point: that adds realism kasi to the story, kaya sana the production designer focused on having a believable and deliverable mise en scene. sayang.

high point ng film ay ang editing. i guess that is still tara's strength, given the years of service niya editing mainstream full-lengths. that one worked, especially during the scenes na natangay ng rumaragasang ilog ang balsa at mga bata. panalo ito te! the other aspects, sorry pero they still need lots of work. the camerawork is good, though. good colors and shots.




okay yun na. trabaho lang folks, walang pikunan!

see you next year!